Unmasked
by Cassie08
Summary: A crossover between Smallville and Batman the Christian Bale batman. About Clark's one true love and baby sister, who have special powers of their own.
1. Profiles

**Profiles**

Name Amee Elizabeth Kent

Birthday May 29

Eye Color Caribbean Blue

Hair Just below shoulder length, brown with blonde highlights, layered

Height Average

Weight/Build Light, around 130, thin

Personality/Hobbies Loves to read and write, very creative and has on-the-button ideas. Extremely intelligent, very good at English and Math, hates history, but does well anyway. Is interested in the medical field. Life goal is to prevent or cure blindness. Is very romantic and wants to be married and have kids. Loves to shop and can't function without music and a watch. Always has paper and a pen handy. Favorite color is yellow and can cook extremely well. Went to Met U for premed and creative writing. Loves poker and any other strategy game. And finally, extremely quick-witted, funny, and sarcastic. Her best friends in the world are Lyndsey Coulton, Chloe Sullivan, and her brother.

Special Info Amee is a Phasma (or like a phasma, if you've read our star wars fics) and got her powers from the Smallville meteor shower. Her real parents were killed, so she was in foster homes for a while, but her powers freaked the families out. Finally, the Kents, having heard the rumors, took her in at the age of four. She and Clark grew up together, and she became really close with all three Kents, and at age 18, changed her last name to theirs. After four years of Premed, she and Lyndsey got a scholarship to Gotham University, where they completed their education. Amee an ophthalmologist and Lyndsey a phorensic pathologist.

Name: Lyndsey Coulton

Age: 26

Career: Pathology at Gotham General Hospital

Hair: Blonde, should length and straight

Eyes: Purple

Build: Very light, tallish, thin (sorta athletic)

Personality: Quiet at times, but outgoing and has a little temper (though she keeps it in check) Sarcastic (not as much as Amee), mischievous, and intelligent.

Other: Inizio(due to the first Smallville meteor shower). Small amounts of lead in her blood makes her lose her ability to turn invisible and make forcefields, until it's out of her system.

History: (Done is first person to make it easier on me) I was 2 when the first meteor shower hit Smallville and developed the power to turn invisible when I was 4. I don't really remember it. And by age 6 I could create forcefields around myself. I couldn't really control my powers well, they just kinda played off of my emotions. Like when I got sad I'd disappear or if I was afraid a pale purple bubble would form around me. I didn't learn to control them until I was 10 because my parents got freaked out by the fact that I was a 'meteor freak'(as Chloe continues to put it.), so they wouldn't let me use my powers.

When I was 16 my parents died in a car crash and the Kents took me in. A few days of living on the farm and Amee saw me turning invisible while I was thinking about what had happened. I told her everything, then made her promise not to tell anyone about my abilities. She came with when I went to work on controlling and stabilizing my powers and after a month, she told me about her being able to walk through things.

As time went on and the years passed the Kent farm became more and more like…home, even with all the weird things that seemed to be drawn to it and the four Kents (I always counted Amee as if she was their flesh and blood). And something happened that I didn't expect, I started to fall for Clark . I didn't realize it until I subconsciously started to avoid him and Amee noticed. I was sure that he didn't feel the same, until he awkwardly asked me out during mine and Amee's senior year at Smallville high. We've been dating ever since.

After about 6 months I told Clark about my meteor powers and a year later he told me about his secret. He was amazed that I was not that surprised, but with him disappearing as easily as I could and Amee covering for it just seemed to fit.

Amee and I went to Met U for pre-med and then got scholarships to Gotham U and Clark came with us and got a job at the Gotham Post. We kept in touch with Chloe and Mrs. Kent to know what was happening back home, but it seemed Gotham needed our help more.

Clark and I are now engaged, but are still waiting to get married.


	2. Chapter 1

I couldn't help but smile as my name was called and I climbed the steps to where the Dean stood with my diploma. I was still beaming as he shook my hand and I heard a loud whistle form somewhere out in the crowd. It could only by my brother, Clark Kent. I glanced toward the crowd and saw him standing toward the back, just as he had done for my best friend and his fiancé, Lyndsey Coulton.

I waved at him discreetly, and smiled at the thumbs up Lynn gave me from the hoard of students who'd already gotten their diplomas.

The rush of excitement didn't leave me as I took my seat. I kept looking at the diploma in my hands in awe, 8 years of hard work for this piece of paper.

But I was an ophthalmologist.

It was something I'd never thought I would get, since my parents had never had much money. I smiled to myself again, hoping Dad knew how happy I was from Heaven. Mom would have come, but she was tied up at the senate. I'd never seen her so upset about being a senator as when she'd found out that she wouldn't make it to Lyndsey and I's graduation.

I kept thinking to myself as the long ceremony continued, and at last, it ended, and I threw my cap up with everyone else, and then frantically relocated it amongst all its twins so that I could keep it.

I had just found it when Clark tackled me from behind; giving me a big bear hug that very nearly crushed me.

"Clark…" I gasped. "All this was for nothing if I don't make it to work on Monday…"

Lyndsey and I had such impressive academic records and resumes that we already had jobs lined up at Gotham General, which was only a short walk from our apartment building.

"Sorry." He let me go and smiled. "I'm going to find Lynn, wait here."

"Ok."

He began fighting through the crowd to find his fiancé, and I settled against one of the huge poles holding the tent over our heads. Now that college was over, it shouldn't be long until they got married.

I sighed inwardly, my happiness suddenly dampened, I had no one. I would never begrudge Clark and Lynn their happiness, but sometimes, I felt so lonely…when they were wrapped up in each other and I was third person out.

Another hug broke my thought, it was Lynn. My depression immediately evaporated as I hugged my best friend back. She pulled away.

"Thank God we're finished."

I laughed aloud. "Amen."

"Maybe you guys will actually start making the money now." Clark said, kissing Lyndsey softly.

"Ok, Mr. Hotshot Reporter." I smirked.

"Lets get out of here." Lynn said, taking Clark's hand. "I'm starving."

"Me too." I said.

We left and ate dinner at a small, nice restaurant, even drinking a little wine to celebrate.

On days like these, we could almost all believe we were normal.


	3. Chapter 2

"Lynn, get up now!" Amee yelled for at least the third time now. "You've got to get up or you'll be late for work, making _me _late!"

'I knew we should've gotten the three bedroom apartment!' I thought as I pulled the covers over my head. "Five more minutes." Sharing a room with Amee is a guarantee that I'll be up on time.

"Clark! She won't move!" Amee called to her brother.

"What do you want me to do?" He yelled back.

"Something would be nice!" She yelled sarcastically.

Three, or was that two, seconds later, I was in Clark's arms and he kissed me on the forehead.

"I hate your super speed sometimes." I mumbled as I took off his glasses, then laid my head on his shoulder, eyes closed.

"Thanks, Clark." Amee said sarcastically. I heard footsteps going toward the bathroom, probably to finish getting ready. "That was a BIG help!"

"Any time, Amee." He replied, and then kissed me softly on the lips. "C'mon, Lynn, you have to wake up."

"Fine." I said, opening my eyes.

Clark set me on the ground. "And you have to give my glasses back."

I tolled my eyes. I hated Clark's glasses; I couldn't see his clear gray eyes behind them. "I will before Amee and I leave. I still don't see why you can't just go without them. It's not like we're fighting any crime here."

"I still wear them because the Daily Planet made sure to send copies of all of their Superman info to most large Newspapers and the last thing all of us need is for someone at the Post to think I look too much like myself."

I rolled my eyes again. "Alright, now get out of here so I can get ready before Amee kills us both."

Clark smiled down at me and then left.

I got dressed quickly in one of my suits, it was after all my first day at the hospital, so I wanted to make a good impression, but as soon as I could, I was planning to take off my blazer. As I was pulling my hair up into a bun, Amee entered our room and set a cup of coffee in front of me.

"Thank you!" I said, drinking half of it right away.

"Ready?" She asked, smiling.

"Yep." I replied after finishing the rest of my coffee.

We headed for the door and almost made it, but-

"Lyndsey!" Clark called.

"Damn it." I mumbled. "One of these days he'll forget.'

"Took his glasses again?" Amee asked, nearly laughing.

"Of course." I replied, heading back toward the kitchen.

There was Clark, looking down at me, slightly smirking. "Did you think I'd let you walk right out the door without getting them back?"

"I can dream, can't I?" I replied, smiling up at him as he pulled me closer and kissed me softly.

"I love you." He said, returning my smile.

"I love you too. Now, me and Amee have to go or we'll be late."

"Alright." I started to go, but as I reached the kitchen door, Clark stopped me again.

"_Lynn_."

I threw him his glasses with a sigh. "Bye."

"Bye." He replied.

"About time." Amee joked when I came back.

"Have a good day you two, and be careful." Clark called as I closed the door.

"If he doesn't get going, he'll be the one who's late." I said, as we made our way to the monorail station down the street.

"He'll make it. He's the one with super speed." Amee reminded me with a smirk.

At the hospital, Amee and I parted ways. I headed to the end of the grounds, where the Pathology Lab was, while she…well, I wasn't really sure where the Ophthalmology office was yet…but that's where she went.

The day passed slowly, even with all of my work, seeing as blood and Bx slides are not the most exciting things in the world. And despite Gotham's high crime rate, the morgue was all but empty due to the fact that most of the crime lords made sure no one found who they got rid of.


	4. Chapter 3

Amee's POV

My first day on the job was amazing…already had two interesting cases on my new desk solved and filed. I was satisfied, this would do.

I hung my lab coat up on its hook in my office and made my way toward Lynn's department. She was just leaving as I got there. We threw our bags over our shoulders and began walking toward home.

"So, how was your day?" She asked as we walked.

"Great. Yours?"

"I love it." She beamed.

I smiled back. "Me too."

We walked along, talking and thinking aloud. We'd always gotten along well, having known each other since we were 16. Clark was the best big brother in the world, but the presence of another female my age in the house had been a welcome joy when my parents adopted Lyndsey. Usually, I was a jealous person, but with her, that hadn't been the case.

Of course, Jonathan and Martha weren't my biological parents, but they were the only parents I'd ever had. I'd even changed my last name to Kent as soon as I could. Of course, I didn't hold a grudge against my parents, who'd died in the Smallville meteor shower. I didn't even hate the meteor shower, it gave me my gift and brought Clark to my parents, Lyndsey and I. What I hated were the endless foster homes, full of narrow-minded people who were scared of me because I could walk through walls…

But that was all the past. I had Clark now. I had my parents, I had Lyndsey. But there was still something missing.

Suddenly, Lynn elbowed me lightly. I shook out of my thoughts and saw immediately what she had seen.

Only about 200 feet or so away, and the distance closing each second, were three men. Even from this far away, I could see them eyeing us in a way that automatically made me uncomfortable. Whether they were looking at us or our bags, I didn't know. Probably both.

And they were between us and home.

Lynn and I scrunched closer together, keeping our pace, after all, they could be harmless.

They were right in front of us, the second one pulled a gun and dug it into my stomach. With the sun already mostly set, no one would have seen it anyway.

"Into the alley, and neither of you need to get shot." He hissed, his breath a wreaking odor floating up my nose.

Ok, so they weren't harmless.

I made my way into the alley calmly, tugging Lyndsey along. She had always been braver than I, resisting automatically.

As the last of our bodies disappeared into the alley, the first man slammed me against the wall and began feeling me all over. I wasn't even sure if he was checking to see if I had anything valuable or just doing it to touch me. I glanced over to see the second man doing the same to Lyndsey, while the third kept the gun trained on us. She had a firm resolute look on her face, I knew both of us were fast coming to a solution.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, they backed off, and the first man took the gun.

"All right. Give us the bags." He said, holding out his hand.

Neither of us moved.

"Now! Or I shoot!" He pointed the gun at me and Lynn looked over, meeting my eyes. Ever so slightly, I nodded.

I had just enough time to see her vanish before I fell back through the wall behind me. I didn't know where I was, but I could tell from the shouts on the other side that we'd achieved the affect we'd wanted.

I took off my coat and shoulder bag, then came back through the wall.

The first man appeared to be in the process of being beaten up by some invisible force, but I knew better.

'Go Lynn.' I thought as he fell unconscious. She reappeared and smiled.

The man who'd felt me stood less than a foot away, and I walked up to tap him on the shoulder.

When he turned, I gave him a right hook he'd never forget and he fell to the round.

Then, I heard a gun cock, and felt a barrel on my head.

"Back away slowly." He said in a panicked voice. "And you, over here with her."

I was on the wall again, Lynn joined me.

The guy was clearly freaked out, he rocked form foot to foot as the gun stayed pointed at us.

"I don't know what you freaks are! But I'd rather be able to sleep at night knowing you ain't coming for me!"

Lynn grabbed my arm as he pulled the trigger, and her force field stopped the bullet mere inches from our faces.

She dropped the field and the bullet fell, and we smirked at the man in triumph. His mouth fell open and he was in shock long enough for me to kick the fun from his hands.

Lynn performed the best spin kick I'd ever seen and the last mugger hit the ground, joining his friends in the dirt of the alley.

So those karate lessons we'd taken had come in handy.

We both let out a breath, and I went back through the wall to get my things. When I came back out, she stood waiting.

We walked home in silence, knowing Clark would be furious when he found out.

"Guess the crime rate is higher than we thought." She said as we climbed the stairs.

"You think?"


	5. Chapter 4

Lynn's POV

Amee and I stopped outside the apartment door. We were both thinking the same thing – Clark was gonna blow this way out of proportion. We stood there for a moment, then Amee glanced at me and I nodded. At last, I opened the door.

Clark jumped up the moment we stepped into the apartment and was standing in front of us before I had closed the door. He placed a hand on my right shoulder and his other on Amee's left shoulder, probably so we wouldn't try to just walk past him without an explanation.

"Where have the two of you been? What happened? Are you Ok? Do you two have any idea how worried I've been?" He said, concern and anger laced in his voice.

"We're only twenty minutes late, Clark." Amee told her brother.

"It was nothing that we couldn't handle." I said as I shrugged his hand off my shoulder and tried to walk past him, but he caught my wrist.

"'Nothing you couldn't handle?'" He asked. "Is that with or without your powers?"

Amee and I exchanged a glance, then together we replied "With."

"That's what I thought." Clark said, folding his arms. "What happened?"

It was clear there was no way we were getting out of telling him now. Amee and I started fighting each other with our eyes. As usual, she won.

I sighed, "Some guys tried to mug us."

"What?!" Clark's gray eyes went form soft with concern to steel with anger.

"It was nothing!" Amee nearly yelled. "Those guys are probably _still _unconscious in that alley!"

"Guys? As in more than one?" He asked.

"There were only three1" I retorted.

"You were outnumbered?!" Clark said, as if we were crazy.

"_They_ were out numbered!" Amee and I shouted.

Clark ran a hand through is hair in response.

"Clark, we can take care of ourselves!" I said, glaring at him.

"Lyndsey, you two got mugged1" He retorted.

"Almost1" Amee and I yelled. "Almost got mugged!"

"Fine." Clark said, as he started to pace. "_Almost_ got mugged, but that's too close."

Amee ran a hand through her hair, sometimes, it was hard to believe that they were not really siblings. "So, what do you propose we do about it, Superman?!" She asked sarcastically.

"I don't know!" He replied as he stopped pacing.

I put up an I invisible force field before any of our neighbors decided to listen in anymore. "The crime rate of this city is rising every day." I said.

Clark looked at me like I was insane, but Amee smiled.

"Lynn, whatever you're thinking…" Clark began.

"Clark, she's right." Amee said. "We should do something. No, we have to do something!"

"No." He said firmly. "I won't let you two put yourselves in harm's way."

I smiled up at Clark innocently, "I'd like to see how you plan to stop us." With that said, I turned invisible and dropped the force field.

"Lynn!" Clark said, annoyance in his voice. "You're and Amee's weakness is worse in this city. You know Amee can't go through lead and we're not even sure what it will do to you."

"It might not even have an effect1" I protested from somewhere behind him, he turned quickly, but I'd already moved.

"It has on everyone that was in the meteor shower!" He continued to look for me without any luck.

"She has a point." Amee said, smirking slightly. "Lyndsey has been around lead before and nothing has happened."

"Thanks, Amee. It's nice to have a little support." I said, reappearing beside her, smirking at Clark.

He stared at us a moment, then sighed. "You're both going to go out there and try to do something no matter what I say, right?"

"Or course." I replied.

"If you think we're _not_ going to, then you don't know us that well." Amee nodded.

"All right, but I'm not letting you out of my sight." Clark finally said, pulling us both into a tight hug.

"I'm sorry to have to burst your bubble, brother dearest, but Lynn can easily be out of your sight."


	6. Chapter 5

Lynn's POV

The next day passed uneventfully, Clark was back to trying ot talk us out of "moonlight" hero work. He gave up after an hour.

"Hey Amee?" I asked, "Not to sound too much like my hair color, but what are we supposed to wear while fighting crime?"

"Well…we can't exactly wear what Clark does." Amee mused.

"What's wrong with my suit?" Clark asked, comingup behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist.

"It's good for you, but I don't think a cape and tights are up mine and Amee's alley." I said.

"A cape doesn't sound half bad." Amee said. "It'll look cool when I ghost."

"That's true. I'm more of a cloak person myself." I stated matter-of-factly.

"What's the difference?" Clark asked.

"Cloaks have hoods, capes don't." Amee clarified.

"…oh…" Clark remarked.


	7. Chapter 6

Amee's POV

That night, Lynn and I searched all over for some sort of place that we could buy something to wear. As funny as it will sound, we ended up at a downtown costume shop. We both dawned X-men outfits, although Lynn cut a V-neckline in hers because she couldn't stand the high collar. We kept the belts, just flipped them over backward so the 'X' wouldn't show. Finally, masks to complete the ensemble.

Elementary, most definitely, but for now, it would have to do.

When we came back to the apartment, Clark sat in his recliner, in normal street clothes. His last try to talk us out of this, I supposed. His arms were crossed, though he smiled at the costumes over our arms.

I held up a finger. "Don't say a word."

He laughed anyway, then stood. "Just let me say one more time how ridiculous this is."

Lyndsey walked over to him. "Your don't have to come if you don't want to."

Before he could answer, I thrust my hand through his T-shirt and grabbed the thing layer of fabric underneath. I smiled, pulling it back out through his shirt. The fabric was blue. He sighed and a smile played Lynn's lips.

"He wants to come." I said.

One hour later, after Lynn dug out the old cloak we'd made years ago for fun, we left through the window, Lynn keeping us invisible and Clark flying us down.

It didn't take long to find a young woman in the same situation Lynn and I had been in the night before, only she was helpless.

Just to prove our point to my brother, Lynn and I made short work of the muggers, and I could have sworn I saw the edge of a smile on his face as he flew off toward Gotham's police station.

As we watched him go, I looked over at Lyndsey. "You know he'll never admit it, but he likes this."

"Yeah, I know." She said, watching him fly off.

I glanced over her outfit.

"You know…we don't look half bad in these things."

She put an arm around my shoulders. "This just might turn out better than I thought."

"I hope so." I said.

Before long, Clark came back and we went looking for trouble yet again.

To sum up the night, we stopped four people from getting mugged, kept some guy from jumping out a window, blocked a broken section of monorail track, and saved a woman from being shot.

Offhand, I'd say we had a lot of work to do.


	8. Chapter 7

Catherine Luthor saw the limo arrive from her window and rose to gracefully descend the grand staircase and welcome her husband, Lex. Luthor, home. Her blonde hair was twisted into an elegant bun, and she was tall and slender, dressed in a thin white gown as she opened the door. Lex entered, coming out of the rain, and she kissed him lightly. He could probably already tell she was in a foul mood.

"What's wrong, darling?" He asked.

She scowled. "What's always wrong."

"You feeling jealous again?" He asked.

"Yes." She sulked. "Did you bring the drug?"

He nodded, reaching into the inside pocket of his suit and pulling out a small box. He handed it to Catherine, who greedily opened it, revealing ten tiny capsules. The powder in each one was green, glowing slightly.

"How did the trials go?" She asked, the green reflecting in her selfish eyes.

"Very well." Lex answered. "The only side effect was blurred vision and some discoloration in the pupils." He kissed her neck, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "Will this suffice, my love?"

She nodded, closing the case and handing it back to him.

"I have a meeting with him day after tomorrow. All I have to do is convince him to sign his company over to me."

"Has he ever even met you?"

"No." She scowled. "Nobody knows I exist. He's rich and always gets attention. Even with my power, I can't beat him, he always has more."

Lex kissed her again. "The drug will help. He'll have no idea what he's doing.

"Yes." She turned to wrap her arms around him. "Then, we'll be rich."

"We're already rich."

"We'll be rich AND famous. And when you unmask Superman, we'll double in fame and fortune again."

"And power." He whispered seductively.

He picked her up and began up the stairs.

"Once I have his company, only one thing will remain to be done. And Gotham will finally have something to report. The rise of a new billionaire."

Lex stared at her. "And the death of Bruce Wayne."


	9. Chapter 8

Lynn's POV

A few days after we started our moonlight work, Clark came home with the next day's edition of the Gotham Post. That was one of the many reasons he worked at the Post, he had access to news of almost everything that went on in Gotham.

"Well, looks like we're making a difference." He said, handing the paper to me and Amee looked over my shoulder.

The Article Read:

New Heroes on the block

It seems that Gotham is home to three heroes, here to combat the rising crime rate. Metropolis' very own Superman and two never before seen heroes have been sighted fighting for truth and justice in the back alleys of our city.

The two new heroes, or should I say heroines, are quick becoming knows as the Phantom and Vanish. True to their names, the Phantom appears to be able to walk right through solid objects and Vanish…well, she doesn't seem to appear at all.

What brought these heroes to our crime-ridden city? Do they plan to stay? And will they exist harmoniously with our local hero Batman? Only time and reporters will tell.

"That Phantom, huh?" Amee said, smirking. "I like it."

"I like Vanish too." I said, smiling. "Bu they seemed to be more interested with us than Clark."

"Yeah, and whether or not we're gonna get along with Batman." Amee added.

"Everyone already knows about Superman. New heroes are more interesting." Clark said. "We haven't even seen Batman yet."

"There's certainly enough crime in this city to go around though." I reminded him. "I don't think we'll have any trouble."

"I hope we run into him soon." Amee said. "it'll be nice to meet someone else like us."

"You do know he's human right?" I asked, laughing a bit.

Amee replied by punching me lightly in the arm.

"Jus checking." I said with a smirk.


	10. Chapter 9

Lynn's POV

A few days after our article in the Post, we had our first encounter with Batman. It was definitely…how to put this…memorable.

We stood on a rooftop looking down on one of the many back alleys of Gotham. A light rain was just beginning to fall, when we heard a faint noise from behind us. Turning, we saw Batman perched on the top of a large pipe that was on the roof, his cape blowing lightly in the wind, much like Clark's was.

For a couple of moments, we all just stared at each other; finally, Batman broke the ringing silence.

"This is my city. I've been protecting it too long for a couple of new heroes and Metropolis' justice defender to come here and try and take over."

Clark and I stared at him with a mixture of amazement and disdain. Amee, more or less just stared.

"Take over?!" I nearly yelled. "We're not here to 'take over.' We're here to help!"

"There's too much crime in this city for one man to fight." Clark threw in.

"I've been fighting it for a long time without help. I hadn't had you pegged for a hero who needed sidekicks." Batman retorted.

"We are NOT his sidekicks!" I shouted, outraged.

Clark placed a hand on my shoulder, whether it was to try and calm me down or to stop me from trying to beat the hell out of Batman, I wasn't sure. "We work together as a team." He said evenly.

Amee still hadn't come out of her daze to aid us in this stalemate. In fact, she hadn't even taken her eyes off Batman. He seemed to be looking at her too, but then, his eyes turned back to Clark and me.

"Gotham is under my protection, not yours." That said, he dove off the side of the building and into the rainy night.

"Well, he's an ass." I said.

"Yeah, you'd think that he would want a little help around here." Clark added.

"Hello? Earth to Phantom? Can you here me?" I waved a hand in front of Amee's face.

She blinked a few time. "Well…I guess the Post will get its answer…he hated us." Was all she said.

Clark and I exchanged a glance, I couldn't help but laugh a bit (luckily, Amee didn't notice). So, Phantom had a crush on Gotham's own Batman. Who would've guessed? Now, a question hung in my mind. When would we see our Batty friend again and how would Amee react?

One thing was for sure, Clark hated him now.


	11. Chapter 10

Third Person

Bruce was deep in thought as he removed the batsuit. His intentions when he'd set out that night had been to observe, to see what these new heroes were like. When he'd decided to send them away from his city…well, he hadn't expected what happened.

He could only hope that his obvious fascination with the Phantom hadn't been as prominent as he thought.

Knowing his luck, it had.

One thing was for sure, he would know those eyes anywhere…masked or unmasked.

Lynn's POV

"You hate him, don't you?" I asked Clark with a slight smirk as I leaned over the back of the couch, looking down at him.

"Hate who?" He asked, as if he really didn't know, while he pulled me over the couch and down beside him.

"Batman." I said simply. Luckily, Amee was taking a shower, but I put up an invisible forcefield just in case.

He shrugged. "He was a jerk." Clark then kissed me softly.

I pulled back, knowing he was trying to dodge this conversation. "You're not getting out of talking about this that easily. You hate him because he was staring at Amee."

"He was staring at Amee?" Clark was trying his best to sound indifferent.

"Oh, c'mon! You gave him the death glare. The only other person I've ever seen you glare at like that was Lex Luthor."

Clark's expression automatically grew darker.

"Don't." I said when he opened his mouth to speak. "I know the 'And for good reason' speech by heart already. It's just that Amee should be happy like we are."

"I want her to be happy too, Lynn." Clark protested. "But I'm not sure we can trust Batman."

"You wouldn't trust any man that was looking at your sister." I kissed him lightly.

"That's true." He replied with a bit of a smirk.

I laid my head on his chest as I dropped the forcefield. "You still hate him, don't you?"

"Yep."


	12. Chapter 11

Catherine checked her hair in the full length mirror one more time, tucking a curly tendril back behind her ear delicately. She'd had a premonition the night before; things would go as planned today. But still, no use throwing caution to the winds.

She threw her Prada bag over her shoulder, gently though, she didn't want to harm the capsules sitting inside.

As she went down the stairs, Lex emerged from the front parlor. He kissed her on the cheek and bade her good luck, and she gracefully slid into the limo waiting outside.

Crossing her legs, she felt confident.

She was going to win, which could only mean he was going to lose. She couldn't help but flash herself an evil smile in the car mirror.

Bruce Wayne worked diligently in his office, faithfully wading through all the paperwork and helping his father's business to flourish…sort of.

Actually, he was staring blankly at his computer screen. He'd tried to think of every possible way to find out more about the Phantom, but it seemed that she and Vanish had…appeared out of nowhere, so to speak. All he could find through his connections were things about Superman, and frankly, he didn't care about him at all. They hadn't seemed to like on another particularly. Perhaps Superman had noticed him looking at the Phantom. Could they be…involved? He hoped not.

Buy why?

He leaned back in his chair, sighing. Looking at the lock, he realized that he had a meeting with an independent business owner in just a few minutes. He quickly cleared his desk of all the work he _hadn't_ done, straightened his blazer, and took a sip of the water on his desk.

Just then, his phone beeped, a page from his secretary.

'Perfect timing.' He commended himself, even though he'd done nothing else today worth commending.

He pressed the button. "Yes, Patricia?"

"Your 2:00 is here." She said.

"All right. Thanks. Hey, could you tell me her name again?"

"Catherine Luthor, sir."

"Thanks, Patricia."

She hung up and he repeated the name a few times in his head, hoping he would remember. He still wasn't sure why an unknown female independent business-owner wanted to meet with him, but it wasn't the first time and most likely wouldn't be the last.

The door opened and he stood as Patricia ushered a tall, blonde professional-looking woman.

She offered her hand to him and he shook it. "Catherine Luthor." She said.

"Bruce Wayne." He answered, smiling politely.

"Yes, I know." Was that retribution he heard?

"Please, sit." He offered. She did, crossing her legs, but keeping her purse in her lap. "Can I offer you a drink?" He asked, seeing her eye his water glass.

"Yes, please." She said eagerly. "Water will be fine."

Bruce made his way over to the counter with the water pitcher on it.

Catherine swiftly and silently broke a capsule into Bruce's water. Then, a second, just to be safe.

'This is too easy…' She thought.

He was signing his own death warrant.

Bruce returned to his seat, passing Catherine her water as he went. She took a sip, and he did the same…something changed.

His eyes burned for a second, and he blinked furiously, almost broke out in a sweat…

Then it was gone, and Catherine was looking at him slyly, but for some reason, he wasn't bothered by it.

"Now, Miss Luthor, what did you…wish to discuss?"

Catherine leaned forward, folding her long, slender fingers under her chin. It had worked, she could already tell.

"Mr. Wayne, how do you feel about emergency instance financial security?

"And by the way, it's 'Mrs.'"


	13. Chapter 12

Catherine smiled evilly to herself as she returned home; Lex was waiting in the parlor when she arrived.

"How did it go?" He asked after greeting her with a kiss.

"It couldn't have gone better! The effects were instant." She said, happily wrapping her arms around Lex's neck. "I've finally done it! I've defeated Bruce Wayne!"

"This is cause for celebration. I'll get champagne." Lex said after kissing Catherine deeply. "And soon, we'll have another fly off our backs once I destroy Superman."

"Dear, I've been wondering just how you know this Kent person is really Superman…" Catherine said, following him out of the room.

"It's very simple, darling." Lex replied. "After Clark Kent left Metropolis, all traces of Superman did as well. I've been watching the Kent family for a good number of years now; all three of their children were adopted. Clark was the first at age 2, that happened the same year as the meteor shower hit Smallville, then, a few years later, they adopted a girl named Amee, she even changed her name to Kent, and last, nearly ten years later, they took in another girl by the name of Lyndsey."

"I'm not sure I see what adoptions have to do with any of this."

"Weird things are drawn to those three, but once they left Smallville, everything turned so ordinary that _anyone_ would have noticed."

"Oh, I see." Catherine said, smiling rather evilly again.

"Yes, and soon, we'll have Gotham on its knees."

"But what about Batman?"

"He's been fighting the crime in this city for years and he hasn't even begun to make a difference." Lex handed Catherine a glass of champagne, then lifted his own glass into the air. "To victory."

"To victory."


	14. Chapter 13

Amee's POV

Our superhero nightlife fortunately didn't affect our work abilities. Everyday life seemed painfully ordinary compared to our exciting nights.

Until the day Bruce Wayne came to my office.

I was sitting at my desk, doing the normal paperwork, when a nurse leaned in the door.

"We have a work-in, can you handle it?"

"Oh, sure!" I said, standing and coming around to take the file.

The nurse slipped out and I read through quickly, discoloration, blurred vision…Bruce Wayne. Bruce Wayne?!

'Well.' I thought. 'This should be interesting…'

How I'd managed _not_ to see Gotham's billionaire, I didn't know.

But he was supposed to be a hunk, so I walked fast.

I entered the room swiftly, trying not to look at him just yet, it was never a good idea to slobber on patients.

"Good morning, Mister Wayne." I said, before I realized it was afternoon.

I put his file on the table and sat down in my rolly chair, then wheeled over in front of him. "What can I do for you today?" I asked, finally looking up at him and smiling.

He was looking at me as though he recognized me, his mouth slightly open, but even with that dumbfounded expression, the rumors were right. He _was_ good-looking. And I felt myself blushing lightly.

Finally, he seemed to break from his reverie.

"Excuse me, Dr…?"

"Kent." I said. "I apologize. I'm Dr. Kent."

"Kent." He said thoughtfully, shaking my hand, but looking at my eyes, fixating on them. It seemed like forever that he shook my hand, but he took his hand back, keeping the eye contact. "I went to my usual doctor for some blurred vision, he referred me to you."

"Yes." I said, picking his file up off the counter. "You seem to also have some discoloration, which could be a sign of macular degeneration, even glaucoma. Not usual for someone your age."

He just kept looking at me, searching me, it seemed.

"So…" I said awkwardly. "We're going to run some tests, and then I'll speak with you again." I buzzed the nurse.

"Tracy, get me a K-reading, retinal scans, run an OCT, and check his pressures please."

She appeared a moment later, then took Bruce out the door and down the hall.

Why did he keep looking at me that way? Part of me…sort of liked it.

Almost an hour later, when the tests were finished, I sat again with Bruce Wayne, explaining that everything seemed normal. Using the K-reading, I quickly had the opticians make him a pair of reading glasses, which seemed to help.

He was just getting up to leave, when he turned back to me.

The intensity of his gaze had decreased, but it still sent shivers down my spine, the scrutiny. Pleasant shivers, of course, no man had ever looked at me that way.

"Could I…take you to dinner, Dr. Kent?" He asked.

I was stunned, and had to consciously think to make my mouth shut again. "I…can't date patients."

"But I'm not your patient anymore." He said slyly.

I paused a moment. "Well…"

"Friday night. 7:00. Meet me at Wayne Tower." He left, almost disappeared, and I smiled.

Bruce Wayne wanted to go on a date with me.


	15. Chapter 14

Lex Luthor sat behind his desk in his home office, waiting for the computer to finish printing. Nine simple words in bold black lettering were the only things on the snow-white paper.

_I've Found You. Now it's Your Turn to Seek._

He folded the note and placed it in an envelope that was already addressed. Catherine came up behind her husband and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"What are you up to, dear?" She asked, then glanced at the computer screen. "Hide and seek?"

"Yes. I'm sending a little message to an old friend of mine." He dropped a small piece of meteor rock into the envelope. Just a pale green rock now, but when the letter was opened again, it would have a powerful effect.

"Anyone I know?" She asked, picking up the letter. "Kent? The one you think it Superman?"

"Yes." Lex replied, taking one of Catherine's hands and kissing it. "I thought I would put my plans into action, seeing as yours are working out so beautifully"

"Excellent."

Amee's POV

Friday came slowly, but at the same time, quicker than I wanted. When I got home from work, it was 5:00. I had an hour and a half to get ready. Needless to say, I hadn't said anything to Clark. I didn't have a week to fight over this one with him. Lyndsey knew though, and I don't know how she did it, but she managed to keep Clark working at the Post long enough to let me get out of the house. But even she didn't know what she was going to say when he got home. But I tried not to think about that.

Lyndsey made herself comfortable with a book while I jumped in the shower. When I got out, I used my Japanese Cherry Blossom lotion al over, and blow-dried my hair lightly, so it would stay a little wavy.

After wrapping my chenille robe around me, I came back out to the bedroom, and threw open our tiny closet. I backed up, crossing my arms.

"Ok, Lynn. What do I wear?"

She put her book down, and came to stand beside me. "I guess that depends on where you're going." She looked at me expectantly.

"…don't look at me! I have no idea where we're going!"

She scoffed. "Great, Amee."

"What?! I didn't have time to ask, he just left!"

After taking into consideration that Bruce Wayne was my date, this was a _first_ date, and the options in central Gotham, we finally decided on a semiformal cocktail dress. It was dark navy, stopped just below the knees, and had stars all over, with a bow on the lower hip to the side. It had spaghetti straps, and a light net shawl, appropriate, since it was June. Finally, I put on a black wedge-heeled who and switched to a black clutch to match.

Lynn stood back, looking me over. "Perfect." She nodded. "Now, your hair."

Since the dress was so nice, we compensated by leaving my hair down, just curling it in a few places.

I had just turned in the mirror one last time when Amee grabbed my hand, looking at my watch. "Oh crap! He'll be home in five minutes!"

"Damn!" I cursed quietly, grabbing my shawl and clutch. "Do you think he could be early?"

"He was suspicious, so, yeah, it's likely."

I frantically rushed toward the door, but stopped dead when the knob began to turn.

Lynn shoved me behind the door and ran to Clark and kissed him on the lips. She shooed me with her hand discreetly. I went through the walls until I emerged in the corridor. I cast one backward glance back at our window as I left, hoping Lynn could hold down the fort, or, at least, make up a good lie as to where I was.

Lynn's POV

"What was that for?" Clark asked, smiling down at me after I'd ended our kiss.

I shrugged. "No reason. How was your day?"

"Fine." He answered absentmindedly as he looked around the apartment. "Where's Amee?"

"I'm not gonna lie to you." I said, taking a step back from him. "She's on a date."

"With?" He asked tensely.

"Bruce Wayne."


	16. Chapter 15

Lynn's POV

"Stop pacing!" I nearly ordered Clark. "Amee hasn't even been gone an hour yet!"

I couldn't help but smile, Clark's over-protection was both admirable and annoying, depending on whether it was stopping Amee and I from doing something or if it was over something like this.

He glanced at me as if _I_ was the one pacing around for no good reason. "I'm just worried. I'm not sure if we can trust this Wayne guy."

"Does that have anything to do with the fact that at this moment, he's on a date with your sister?"

"Maybe." He continued to pace.

"Stop that! If you _must _move, do something useful…like checking the mail."

"Fine." Clark said, heading for the door.

Clark's POV

After getting the mail from the lobby of the building, I headed back upstairs, barely noticing the climb was a little difficult. I was just too worried about Amee. Sure, I wanted her to be happy, but I wanted it to be with someone she could trust.

I entered the apartment and found Lynn right where I'd left her reading, not that I expected her to disappear, but sometimes, when she was focused on something or sad or upset, she sort of faded in and out.

"Anything from Chloe?" She asked.

"No…" I replied, but when I reached the last envelope, there was no return address. I opened it and pulled out the letter, and the last thing I expected to fall into my palm as well.

Kryptonite.

Lynn's POV

I jumped to my feet as Clark fell to the ground. "Clark!" I bent down beside him. "What happened?!"

He tried to hand me something, but he didn't have the strength.

"Kryptonite." I mumbled quietly. I quickly grabbed the small glowing stone in the palm of his hand, then ran to mine and Amee's room. We always kept a small piece of Kryptonite here just in case. I found the little lead box in the bottom of Amee's dresser and put the Kryptonite in with the matching green stone that was already there.

I came back into the living room, and Clark was standing there with a letter in his hands. I hugged him tightly.

"You okay?" He asked me.

"Me?! You're the one that was on the floor a moment ago!" I said, looking up at him, shocked.

"Your heart sounds like it's trying to beat its way out of your chest and you're fading in and out." He said, smiling down at me knowingly, but his eyes looked worried.

"What is it?" I asked, quickly getting my emotions under control.

He handed me the sheet of paper.

"Lex Luthor."


	17. Chapter 16

Amee's POV

I arrived at Wayne Tower five minutes early, but Bruce was already there. As I approached, he smiled warmly, looking me up and down. I blushed.

"Am I overdressed?"

He shook his head. "You look beautiful, Dr. Kent. If you don't mind me saying."

I smiled, "You look handsome yourself, and it's Amee."

He nodded, then offered his arm.

"So, Bruce –" I looked at him questioningly, wondering if he minded my using his first name, he didn't seem to. "Where are we going?"

He put a finger to his lips. "It's a surprise."

I glared at him playfully. He was easy to be with, I didn't feel nervous at all anymore. "Are we walking the whole way?"

"It's no far." He answered, but didn't say anymore."

Soon, we turned into a restaurant. I caught a glimpse of the sing. 'The Blue Flamingo.'

Granted, I hadn't been here long, but I knew this was the most expensive restaurant in Gotham.

"Bruce…" I protested.

"It's fine, Amee. Believe me."

The whole meal went smoothly, and I managed not to get anything on my dress, but it was stuffy and proper and not me. The restaurant, anyway, Bruce was perfect.

After we left, a small park across the street caught my eye.

"Want to take a walk?" I asked.

"Sure." He said.

We walked across the road and through the gate, the stars and moon and city lights illuminating our path. It was times like these I really missed Kansas, where no cars every drove past ten or eleven PM.

My feet were killing me, so I slipped my heels off, carrying them in my left hand, my right looped around Bruce's arm.

During dinner, we'd made polite conversation, basic histories and details, but now, we really talked. About what we liked to do and where we came from. We actually talked about who we were.

Before I knew it, thirty minutes had passed and we were heading back for the exit.

"So." He said. "Amee, what about at night?"

I tensed. "What?"

"What do you do at night? Fight crime much? I love the X-men outfit."

There was no use playing dumb, so I played the shock card, not so difficult. My mouth fell open, but I couldn't speak.

"Don't worry, Phantom. I don't think anyone else knows. I'm just observant."

My voice returned. "You have to promise not to tell anyone else, Bruce. You have no idea how important it is."

"Of course not."

I hadn't noticed, but we were back in front of my building.

He leaned down and kissed me on the cheek, then smiled gently.

"Thank you for dinner." I said absentmindedly. I still couldn't figure out how he knew.

"You're welcome. Maybe I can think up some excuse to visit the hospital again soon."

My flirting switch clicked back on. "Someone you want to see?" I asked shyly.

"Perhaps." He turned and began walking away, and I did the same.

My biggest fear had always been someone discovering my secret, but somehow, I liked him knowing.


	18. Chapter 17

Lynn's POV

Clark and I had decided, or rather, I told him, that we wouldn't ruin Amee's evening by telling her what had happened until the next morning.

So, when Amee came home, I jumped up and greeted her at the door as any best friend would after a first date. "How did it go?! Where did he take you? Was it nice?"

Clark rolled his eyes and mumbled something about killing Bruce.

"It was great. We went to the Blue Flamingo and then walked in the park." She then looked over at her brother and added, "He was a total gentleman."

"He better have been." Clark retorted.

We all went to bed a while after that, but my sleep was interrupted by someone shaking me awake a few hours later.

"Lynn? Please wake up. I need to talk to you!" Amee whispered.

"This better be good…" I mumbled, and then glanced at the clock. "It's two in the morning!"

"Just put up a forcefield!"

"There." I said once it was up. "Now, what was so important that it couldn't wait to be sunlight?!"

"He knows who I am!"

"Who?"

"Bruce knows I'm the Phantom!"

"But, that's impossible! We've never saved him or even met him before!" I said, sitting straight up in bed.

"I know. I don't know how he did it, but he figured it out. We can't tell Clark."

"Of course not. He's not going to tell anyone, is he?"

"No."

"Ok…for now, we just have to make sure Clark doesn't find out that he knows and everything should be all right."

"Thanks, Lynn."

"You're welcome. Now, can I go back to sleep?"

"If you must." She said, smirking as she headed back to her bed, but she stopped dead. "Lynn…you can drop the forcefield."

"Oh…sorry."

Saturday night came and neither Clark nor I had old Amee about the kryptonite in the email. We had all thought one night off from crime fighting was enough, so we got ready to go out.

"Amee…there's something I need to tell you." I said when we were ready to go.

"What is it?" Se asked, not seeming worried.

I bit my lip and glanced at Clark, who shrugged. "Last night we found a piece of kryptonite in the mail. Someone knows who Clark is and we think it's Lex."

"What?!" She nearly shouted. "Why didn't you guys tell me last night?! Did it hurt Clark?!"

"I'm fine. Nothing major happened, it just made me weak." Clark said.

"We didn't want to ruin your evening." I explained.

"How did he find us?" She asked next.

"We're not sure, but he's up to something." Clark said grimly.

"We shouldn't worry about this until we have more information. We've got more important things going on now, like trying to save some people tonight." I stated matter-of-factly.

"So, we're just going to do nothing?" Clark asked.

"That's all we can do until we know what he's up to." Amee said, not sounding at all happy about it.

'Great, between the three of us, I'm the only one that no one knows who I am. Just great!'

Lex's POV

Lex Luthor paced around his office. B now, Clark would have received his little letter, but how would he get him to fall into his trap? He needed some way that Clark would openly walk into his clutches.

There was always Martha, but kidnapping a senator wouldn't be easy. Amee? That was a possibility; after all, his sources said she was working at the hospital right her in Gotham. No, a senator's daughter disappearing was almost as bad. Lyndsey…it wouldn't be that difficult to make her vanish. She was working at the hospital as well and she and Clark had gotten engaged not too long ago.

She would suffice.


	19. Chapter 18

Amee's POV

The day after Lynn told me about the kryptonite in the mail, which was a Sunday, I stuck around the apartment, keeping an eye open for anything that could have given Clark away or anyone watching us somehow.

The prospect of Lex Luthor knowing all about my brother's secret sent shivers down my spine. Not only did he know about his weakness, but he knew Superman's identity. That, or he'd made a lucky guess.

My strategy was simple, act as though nothing had happened, because there was no doubt in my min that we were being watched closely. The only people I could trust where Lynn, Clark, and Bruce.

Clark most definitely didn't approve of Bruce being on my trust list, and under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have been. But there was something about him. Something…comforting. And I knew he could never betray us.

It was around 2:00 and I was getting bored. So I made my way to the living room and turned on the TV, just in time for the news. The reporters all spoke in almost…frantic voices. Worried and scared.

"Where has the winged avenger disappeared to?" One woman asked. "Gotham is now at the mercy of the remnants of the insane asylum in the Narrows. Numerous attacks and murders are cultivating onto the police force. Without Gotham's hero, the statistics are devastating."

I watched in horror as report after report, photo after photo flashed before my eyes. No one was doing anything. Gotham was going crazy.

When Lynn and Clark came home from shopping, they found me like that, still staring blankly. Clark turned off the TV and kneeled in front of me, shaking my shoulders.

"Amee? Amee, what's wrong?"

"Batman." I whispered softly. "He's gone."

The Luthors

Lex had had his men watching Lyndsey's every more as soon as she left the apartment. This was going to be more difficult than he thought, she was never alone outside the apartment or work. None of them were acting differently, obviously there first defense.

It was a given that Lex didn't trust anyone enough to do this task but himself, after all he was a Luthor. As he pondered, Catherine walked into the room, still overjoyed about the impending defeat of Bruce Wayne.

"What's the matter, dear?" She asked him, her good mood not wavering.

"Complications in the second phase of my plan to rid the world of Superman."

"What's the problem?"

"The bait for my trap. It seems she'll be harder to catch than I thought.

"Remember, sometimes the simplest plan is the best" With that, she kissed him softly and left him to think.

'Simple.' Lex pondered. 'Perhaps she's right.'


	20. Chapter 19

Amee's POV

Monday came, and even though it had only been one night since I'd found out about Batman's disappearance, it felt like years since he'd flown the dark sky. Lynn and I could see the panic on normal peoples' faces as we walked to work. Everyone was harrying, trying to get home fast.

"This is awful…" I said as an older woman bustled past.

"It is." Lynn said, voice filled with animosity. "But we'll help."

"We can't do it all…" I whispered.

"Neither could he."

"But this was _his_ city. He knew it better. He knew the people, the offenders…"

"Oh, shut up. You're only defending him because you have a crush on him."

I looked at her angrily "Not only is that none of your business, but you're wrong. I 'have a crush' on Bruce."

I shoved past her, walking faster. I reached the hospital first, and didn't see her again, and soon, lunch was nearing. I had a feeling we would not be dining together though.

My lunch hour was half over, and I had stayed in my office working on charts I was behind on. I was depressed, stressed out, and I wanted to go home

I sighed, putting down my pen and putting my head in my hands, closing my eyes.

"Are you okay?"

My head shot up at Bruce's voice, half of me amazed that I could already recognize it so well and half of me ecstatic to see him. Other than an Advil, this was probably all that could have made me feel better.

I smiled weakly, suddenly tired. "Hi. And yes, I'm sort of okay."

"Sort of okay?"

He came around my desk as I stood, looking and talking to me eye to eye. He clanked at my clock, then looked confusedly at me. "Have you eaten?"

I shook my head. "But I'll be fine."

"No. Let me take you somewhere." He looked at my tired eyes. "Nothing big."

I gestured to my office. "I have to work."

"I'll see that the Dean excuses you, with pay." He assured me.

I looked at him thoughtfully, gauging how serious he was. Then, finally, I nodded in defeat. "All right."

I slipped out of my lab coat and grabbed my bag, turning out the light before I shut the door.

As we entered the elevator, he pressed the down button with his right hand…and took my hand with his left.

A chill ran up my spine, and my heart fluttered, my empty stomach now full of butterflies. I could feel his eyes on me and I hesitantly looked back. He seemed sure of himself, as though he'd known I'd like it. Yet, ever the gentlemen, he asked anyway.

"Do you mind?"

I shook my head dazedly, then the elevator doors opened.

The horses stared openly as we passed, and I blushed with pleasure. Of course they were jealous, they should be. For once, the man was holding _my _hand, and I wasn't the one staring.


	21. Chapter 20

Amee's POV

The following day (after a night of the cold shoulder from Lynn and Clark), Bruce called me early in the morning and offered to take me out later that night.

Clark was furious, because he couldn't stand Bruce taking my attention or that I wouldn't be there to help he and Lynn that night when Gotham was in such a bad state I didn't know. Part of the reason I told Bruce yes was to get on his nerves, although I did genuinely feel bad for leaving the team.

Lynn seemed to be in a better mood though, and that night, as I was getting ready, she came to the bathroom to stand beside me in front of the mirror.

"I'm sorry I snapped yesterday." She said to my mirror eyes.

"It's Ok. Me too." I answered her mirror eyes.

Bruce and I met at Wayne Tower just like the first time, although now I was in comfy hiphuggers, tennis shoes, and along-sleeved yellow sweater, despite the June heat, my heavy coat draped over my shoulder and gloves in the pocket. What could I say, he'd told me to dress that way.

I smiled as I approached, involuntarily. I couldn't help it, I was almost bouncing, my ponytail brushing my neck. He smiled back. He was dressed the same way as me.

"Hi." I beamed.

He smiled bigger (if that was possible) in return and took my hand, leading me toward a silver car on the curb.

"No limo?" I joked.

"I thought I'd drive."

He opened the door for me and I slid into the sleek black interior. He walked around and got behind the wheel. "This is nice." I said. "Now, how about telling me where we're going?"

He smiled slyly. "How about not."

I crossed my arms, pretending to pout.

Thirty minutes later, Bruce finally turned into a big ice rink. I felt stupid now.

"Surprised?" He asked.

I didn't want to admit I was.

We walked in hand in hand, stopping at the sporting goods nook on the way in. He bought me a pair of skates since I didn't have any, and then took me out to the ice, where he proceeded to teach me not to fall.

Superhero, ophthalmologist, Kansas farm girl, and I couldn't skate.

At least Bruce seemed to be enjoying himself.

Actually, I was too. It would just take a million years for me to admit that I liked falling down just so he would help me up.

We skated for about two hours before I got it, at which point we decided to call it a night. After our skates were off, he got us two hot chocolates and we sat on a bench watching the other skaters.

I was sipping my hot chocolate contentedly when I felt his eyes on me. I looked up and he smiled down at me.

"Can I tell you something, Phantom?"

I elbowed him. "Of course."

He leaned down to whisper in my ear. "I'm Batman."

My eyes got wide, but only for a moment. Somehow, it didn't surprise me. It made sense. What didn't was why he'd been doing nothing for Gotham.

"Where have you been?!" I hissed through gritted teeth.

"With you." He answered casually.

"You know what I mean!"

He shrugged lightly. "I just didn't feel like it."

"Bruce! Do you have some kind of judgment issue!"

He didn't seem to hear me.

How could he be that way? How could he forget the city he'd so avidly defended the first night I'd seen him?!

Somehow…I didn't like him any less.

I didn't hate him. I was hardly even mad.

Maybe I was the one with the judgment problem.

Or maybe I was just selfish.

But it made my heart beat faster when I realized he'd just told me his deepest secret. Not some other woman, me, Amee Kent.

Clark was going to kill him.


	22. Chapter 21

Lynn's POV

"Clark! Lynn! Wake up now!" Amee said as she shook Clark, who I was using as a pillow, awake.

"Amee? What is it?" Clark asked, still sort of asleep.

"And can't it wait until morning?" I mumbled with my eyes still closed.

"No, it can't." She said, shaking us more. "Bruce is Batman!"

"What?!" Clark and I both sat up straight, wide-eyed.

"But that's-" Clark began.

"Impossible!" I finished.

"He told me." She said.

"Damn." I mumbled.

"Does he know who you are?" Clark asked and I bit my lower lip as he looked at Amee sternly.

"Yes." She whispered. "He knew on our first date. I didn't even tell him!"

"Of course." Clark murmured bitterly. "You're the only person in the world with eyes that blue."

He then turned to me. "And you're the only person with violet eyes. We're just lucky the papers haven't found that out yet."

I sighed. "At this rate, we'll all be unmasked soon."

Clark and Amee nodded grimly.


	23. Chapter 22

Amee's POV

Two days had passed since Bruce had told me the truth. Clark was keeping a wary eye on me, even when I was just talking to him on the phone. It was quite annoying really.

I was trying to divide my time evenly between being the Phantom for Clark and Lynn and being Amee for Bruce. It was a challenge, but Bruce seemed satisfied. Clark, on the other hand, was never happy with my time-splitting.

It had been two nights sine I'd seen Bruce, so I found myself convincing Clark to let me go out.

"You can't trust him, Amee." He said, frustrated.

"Yes, I can, and I can take care of myself. Bruce would never do anything to hurt me." I said as I walked around, gathering money and my purse.

He stubbornly followed me into the bathroom as I went in to pull my hair back.

Clark stood in the doorway, arms crossed. "Amee, listen to me-"

I slammed my hand down on the bathroom counter. "No, Clark. You listen to me! You're not that much older and I don't bug you about Lynn! Let me find someone. I'm not going to be third wheel forever, damnit!"

I grabbed my purse and went through him, then out the front door.

He, of all people, should have known that there isn't anything you can do to keep from falling in love.

I stormed all the way to Wayne Tower, where Bruce stood waiting next to his car. When I saw him, I reached out and wrapped my arms around him. I was so happy to see him, and I'd always hated fighting with Clark.

He hugged me back, stroking my hair gently.

"What's wrong, Amee?" He asked tenderly.

"Lots of things…I'm just glad to see you."

"I'm glad to see you too."

He opened the door for me and I laid my head back, resting my eyes.

When he got in, he took my hand and put the car in drive.

Tonight, he'd told me on the phone he was taking me to Wayne Manor.

When we got there, a sweet old man named Alfred took my coat and bag, and Bruce led me into the biggest sitting room I'd ever seen in my life. A fire roared beneath the mantle, and Bruce pulled me down onto his lap on the sofa before the fireplace.

I felt so out of place in my jeans and blouse, in the middle of all this…money.

He seemed to sense my discomfort, so he kissed my cheek and pulled me closer. "You're fine just the way you are."

My insides melted and I leaned back into him.

"Now." He said. "Tell me everything."

For the next hour, I talked to him about Clark, and he listened. I told him how tired I was, and how much I wished he would go back to being Batman.

He shrugged his shoulders, just as he had before. But there seemed to be nothing I could do, so I just hoped it was some kind of phase he would come out of. After all, there were now many nights that I wished I wasn't the Phantom.

We just sat for a while then, and I had almost fallen asleep when Bruce spoke.

"Do you believe in a kiss on the third date?"

I smiled. "Only if it's you."

He bent low over me. "It's me.

He kissed me.


	24. Chapter 23

Amee's POV

Friday, the next day, I was off of work, so Bruce was going to take me out around noon. That way, Clark would be happy because I would be back in time to help him and Lynn. Bruce also had a press conference that evening, so it had all worked out well.

He was being secretive again, and hadn't told me where we were going, but he had said that jeans would be fine. Then again, he also said he thought I'd look beautiful in anything.

I put on my most comfy hip huggers, and took a loose yellow wide-strapped tank top out of my closet. My hair, I pulled back into a loose ponytail, leaving a few wispy strands loose on the back of my neck and on my forehead. Then I slipped on my jacket over the tank.

Just at noon, on time as usual, the doorbell rang. I went to answer the door, and Bruce kissed me lightly as soon as I'd opened it.

"You look pretty." He said, smiling brightly.

"Thank you." I said. He was dressed in a good pair of jeans and a T-shirt that fit him nicely, and I noted how casual he looked. "You know, you look better like this than any other way."

He looked down at himself. "Yeah, I know. I wish I could dress this way all the time."

I hugged him gently, then back up to grab my wallet.

He stepped in, looking around cautiously. "When do you plan on letting me meet your brother?"

I froze. "I don't think that's the best idea, Bruce…"

"Well, it's going to happen eventually."

"I know, I know." I went over and took his hand in mind and led him out into the hall. "Soon. I promise."

He nodded, then pulled me with him down the hall, the stairs, and out the door.

I walked quietly by his side as we headed toward downtown Gotham. I knew better than to ask where we were going. He wasn't going to tell.

The sun was shining brightly down on us as we walked, hand in hand, but I was glad I'd worn a jacket. It was amazing how much the sounds of the city had become a comfort to me. Or maybe it was just Bruce that had completed everything.

Suddenly, my peaceful thoughts were shattered by a shrill scream coming from an ally a few feet ahead.

I turned to Bruce, who looked undisturbed. "Did you hear that?" I asked.

He nodded.

I started walking faster, almost running, but he held me back. "Don't worry about it."

"Bruce!"

He kept holding.

I looked around cautiously, then ghosted my wrist through his fingers, sprinting as fast as I could toward the scream's origin.

As I turned into the ally, I saw a young woman being mugged. The guy wasn't that big, but he was bigger than her.

I dropped my things and ran forward, dragging the guy off of her and punching him. He turned and smacked me on the jaw, and I flew back to the wall.

Bruce, who had been standing at the alley's mouth came forward, but I angrily pushed him back.

"No! You didn't want to help before, you're not helping now!"

I turned and ran back, spin kicking the brute to the round. I bent to the woman below, who was unconscious.

I glared at Bruce. "Call the hospital. Now!"

He took out his phone and did so.

I strode over and picked up my things, walking back out into the light.

"You stay with her. I'm going home. Don't ask me back until whatever is wrong with you is over with! Until then, think about how much longer you and I will last if you keep ignoring the people who need you!"

I turned and walked away, too afraid to look back.


	25. Chapter 24

Catherine dismissed the man she was paying through the nose to watch Bruce with a flourish of her hand.

She's heard some valuable information, disappointing, but valuable.

Bruce Wayne was Batman.

Yes, this guy she had following him was good at what he did. Perhaps she'd keep him, he was worth the money. Bruce Wayne, being the person he was, most likely wouldn't have let his secret be discovered so easily, but this judgment problem had really taken him down a notch.

She put her finger to her chin, deciding to address the real problem, the girl.

She casually flipped open the portfolio her man had given her. Amee Kent, ophthalmologist at Gotham General, not good, not good at all.

She needed to talk to Lex.

Gracefully, Catherine stood and exited her office, turning right and traveling down the long corridor to Lex's office.

She walked in without knocking, and he looked up from his desk.

"Hello, darling." He said pleasantly.

"What's the antidote?" She asked rapidly.

He looked confused.

"The antidote for the judgment drug, what is it?" She leaned down over his desk.

"There isn't one." He said. "Not that anyone could get their hands on. It either wears off or they break out of it under an outside influence. But if you gave him three capsules, it won't wear off for a while yet."

Catherine cursed under her breath. "He has an outside influence, she almost broke him of it today…"

"Ah, a woman. 'Hell hath no fury.'"

"You better believe that." Catherine said hastily. "He's Batman."

Lex stood. "What?"

"Bruce Wayne is Batman He's signing the company over to me on Wednesday, if she gets through to him, I'm ruined."

Lex pulled her close. "You told me simple was best. Just get her out of your way. You know what to do."

Catherine thought a moment. "Yes, yes I do."

"This is working out wonderfully. We'll rid Gotham of all its superstars, and then you and I will be the heroes."

"Yes, I will be a hero." Catherine said softly.


	26. Chapter 25

Lynn's POV

When I got home from work that evening, I found Amee pacing and not exactly in the best of moods. I couldn't tell if she was pissed or sad or some strange combination of both. Yeah, it was both. Her face showed only anger, yet her eyes were ready to overflow with tears. Thank God Clark was working late!

"Amee?" I said cautiously, coming toward her. "What's wrong?"

"Everything!" She snapped. "I don't know what's wrong with Bruce, but he has lost his damn mind! Today this woman was being mugged, and he didn't do anything! In fact, he said 'Don't worry about it!' I knew he didn't want to be Batman anymore, but I didn't think he'd given up on Gotham yet!"

A lone tear rolled down her cheek.

"Amee, maybe it's just a phase he's going through."

"No, Lynn, this is something else. Something is wrong with him."

"Here is a special news report." A reporter on the TV said, which I hadn't even noticed was on. "We're going live at Wayne Enterprises for a press conference with Gotham's own billionaire, Bruce Wayne."

Amee and I stopped talking at once and turned to the screen. I glanced at Amee and she nodded, she'd known Bruce was holding this conference.

Bruce came on screen smiling as he began to talk. "Good evening. I'm sure you are wondering why I've called this press conference. I've decided to sell Wayne Enterprises," he paused as a murmur ran through the crowd of reporters, I realized Clark was probably among them. As silence returned, Bruce continued. "To Catherine Luthor."

"Luthor?!" Amee and I yelled together.

"Why the hell would he sell his company to a Luthor of all people?!" I said.

"The better question is why would he sell it at all? His father started that company, Bruce loves it." She then added, "and when the hell did Lex get remarried?!"

"Like I know!"

"I've got to talk to him." Amee mumbled as another tear rolled down her cheek. "I've got to try and get him to see reason."

I nodded, knowing if anyone could get through to him, it was Amee…that was if Clark didn't kill him first.


	27. Chapter 26

Amee's POV

The following morning, I dressed rapidly, throwing on jeans and a blue blouse. The press conference the nigh before had pushed me over the edge. Bruce was not this kind of person, something had to be wrong.

I didn't even grab any money or my purse or anything, just slammed the apartment door on my way out. I'd probably woken Lynn and Clark (not to mention the other tenants), but I didn't care.

Once outside, I flagged down a cab, and told him to take me to Wayne Manor. Fast.

We arrived in fifteen minutes, and I explained to the cab driver that if he would wait for me as long as I needed, I would pay him double for his time. He said he'd wait.

I rang the doorbell twice. I hated to hurry poor Alfred, but this was urgent.

He answered as politely as ever. "Good morning, Dr. Kent."

"Good morning, Alfred." I tried to stay calm as I stepped inside, once again noticing the contrast between his crisp suit and my plain attire. "Do you know where I can find Bruce?"

"I believe he's in the foyer, would you like me to take you?"

"No thank you, Alfred, I know the way."

I smiled fleetingly before taking off toward the foyer where Bruce and I had sat when we'd shared our first kiss.

He was on the exact same sofa when I strode in, and looked very surprised to see me. As I reached him, I opened my mouth to speak…and everything I'd planned to say about how angry and hurt I was and how crazy he was acting…left me. I had no idea what I'd wanted to say.

He did that to me sometimes.

So, I started over, making it up as I went.

"Why are you signing your company over to a Luthor? Are you insane?" I crossed my arms, standing in front of the fireplace that had been roaring with life two nights ago.

There was that shrug he kept giving me. "I was going to tell you yesterday, but you left."

"Of course I left Do you have any idea how angry I was?!"

He nodded. "I just didn't think it was a big deal, she would have been fine."

I put my hands on my head, frustrated enough to scream. "She wouldn't have been fine! She was unconscious! What if we –no, I –hadn't helped her?"

Bruce stood, coming toward me, but I backed away. "There's nothing wrong with Catherine Luthor." He said as though comforting me.

"Do you have any idea how sly and manipulative they are?" I asked, calmer than before. "I grew up with them, I know how they are. My brother and I…well, they're not good people, Bruce. Please…listen to me. I wouldn't tell you to do something gif I didn't think it was best. I…"

But I couldn't finish. Not until he was acting in the right again.

A tear rolled down my cheek as I realized that I hardly knew this man before me…yet I was in love with him.

"I have to go." I said, my voice breaking as I turned away, walking swiftly out of the room, wiping my eyes as I went.

How could I be in love with him? How? It made no sense.

But I was.

Damn it. I was.


	28. Chapter 27

Lynn's POV

Lynn's POV

"Do you think she'll be ok?" Clark asked me as we stared at the door to mine and Amee's room. When Amee had stormed out of the apartment, she'd woken Clark, who in turn woke me up. Upon her return, she had simply gone to our room and closed the door behind her without a word.

"Amee is strong…she'll be all right…hopefully." I replied.

"So help me, if he hurt her, I'll kill him. Slowly."

"You won't do anything until she tells us what happened." I told Clark firmly.

I bit my lip. In the past few weeks, our worries had doubled. First, the Kryptonite in the mail, which was shortly followed by Bruce knowing Amee was the Phantom. Then, we find out Bruce is Batman and is planning to hand his company over to a Luthor, now, Amee was upset and Clark and I didn't know why.

Worries, worries, worries. It seemed that's all we had these days.

Amee's POV

That night and the next day, I stayed in the apartment, lying in my bed staring at the wall. I wasn't crying, I wasn't even upset, I was just thinking. Wondering if it was possible to make yourself fall out of love.

I didn't think it was, but I was new to this.

Didn't matter. I wasn't that stupid.

Mostly, I stayed in my room so I wouldn't have to face Clark. The first words out of his mouth would be 'I told you so.' I just knew it.

And even after everything that had happened, I knew that I still would have stood up for Bruce.

And I didn't feel like fighting.

Another night passed me by. I heard Lynn come in, sleep, get ready, leave. Eventually, the door opened and closed another time as Clark went to work.

I was alone again.

Before I'd known what it was like to have someone belong to you, I'd liked being alone. It was my time to reflect, read, relax, do whatever I felt like doing without consequence.

But now, the silence surrounded me like wet clothing, clinging and cold.

I didn't like it.

I got up, making my way to the bookshelf to pick something to read.

It was Monday, and the hospital would be calling soon, wondering where I was. Unless, of course, Lynn had told them I was sick or something. She probably had, she knew me like that.

I picked up an old Stephen King novel, _Salem's Lot_, one of my favorites, and crawled back into bed with it.

Funny, even reading seemed mundane.

Suddenly, I heard a loud bang as someone kicked against the apartment door. I threw the book down and ran down the hallway to see what had happened. Before I got there, there was another kick and I heard the door splinter into pieces.

I came around the corner at a flying pace, my hair sweeping over my shoulder as I stopped.

Before me, the door was in pieces, splintered wood hanging from the hole that a most-likely steel-toed boot had made.

But no one was there.

It was as silent as the grave.

I narrowed my eyes, looking everywhere. I even looked up at the ceiling. Living in Smallville, you learned to be prepared for anything.

Except, apparently, a blunt object.

I didn't even feel the contact, everything just swam before my eyes, then went black.

When I woke up, I wasn't tied or gagged, just sprawled on what seemed to be a tile floor. The walls around me and ceiling above me were painted red, and I knew without even trying to ghost through them that it was lead paint, and the tile were probably coated in it too.

I had to be in the Luthor mansion.

Not only was he the only one who could have known about the lead weakness, but also only a Luthor would hold a hostage with such style.

Catherine looked on as the girl stirred in her lead chamber. There were cameras everywhere in that cell, so she could keep an eye on her.

She turned to her husband, who stood behind her. "I still don't understand why you had it painted with lead-based color."

"Just a precaution." He said. "In case she'd a meteor freak. After all, she is from Smallville, most of them have some sort of aversion to lead."

"Well, is she one?" Catherine asked impatiently.

"I don't know. I focused on her brother so long, I lost track of all the others."

He leaned forward, looking at Amee's confused expression on the screen with pleasure. Once he had the fiancée, he'd have a double bated hook for old Clark Kent. "What are you going to do with her?" He asked.

"That's easy. If she cooperates, we'll let her out as soon as the deal is closed. If she doesn't, we'll kill her."

Lex beamed at his wife. "Keeping things simple?"

She smiled ruthlessly at the screen. "Yes. Keeping things simple."


	29. Chapter 28

Lynn's POV

Lynn's POV

When I arrived at the hospital, I told the Ophthalmology department head that Amee was feeling a little under the weather and wouldn't be in today. I knew Amee well enough to know she wouldn't come to work and that she needed time to think. Clark was on the verge of storming into Wayne Enterprises and strangling Bruce, but I trusted him enough not to.

The day passed slowly and I couldn't concentrate on my work well. I just kept worrying about Amee and Clark and everything else that had been stressing me out lately.

Finally, work was over and I headed home in the diminishing light of the setting sun. Dark shadows were already covering the streets and the hurried footsteps behind me were making me uneasy. When I turned, I saw nothing but a dumpster and a stray cat in the gloom of the evening.

I was only a block away from our apartment building when the footsteps drew closer. I was almost ready to drop into the next alleyway and turn invisible when I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head.

Everything went black after that.

"Excellent!" Lex said when his man brought Lynn to the mansion. She was still unconscious and tied and gagged. "Just put her in the room with the other one."

"Yes, sir."

"Was that the other girl?" Catherine asked, entering the room gracefully.

"Yes, dear. My trap is set and now all we have to do is wait."

'Come to your doom, Clark Kent.'

Clark came home as he always did, but it was clear something was wrong. As soon as he saw the busted door, he ran into the apartment, but Amee and Lynn were not there. Some part of him knew they wouldn't be, but he searched the apartment twice.

Other than the door, the apartment was completely intact. Clark knew only one person could have done this.

Lex Luthor.


	30. Chapter 29

Amee's POV

Amee's POV

The following day (after untying Lynn) passed slowly. Mostly, she listened to me worry about Clark and Bruce, but she'd always been a silent person. Anything she felt didn't show on her face or escape from her mouth. We were counterparts. I talked, she listened.

Many times, I attempted to ghost through the walls of our tiny chamber to no avail, Lynn also tried to turn invisible or put up a force field, but couldn't. This worried us.

It was obvious that I couldn't ghost because the walls and ceiling were coated with lead paint. But Lynn had never lost her powers before.

We weren't sure what to think any longer.

Eventually, we found ourselves leaned against a wall, our heads resting against it, legs stretched out in front of us. If it weren't for our surroundings, one could almost believe we were having a leisurely rest against a tree in a quiet park.

I sighed aloud, it had been a while since either of us had said anything.

"What are you thinking about?" Lynn asked.

"I miss Kansas." I answered.

Lynn chuckled a bit. "In Kansas, this is normal." When I didn't laugh, she looked over at me. "Me too."

"As soon as we get out of here, we should call Mom. Chloe too."

Lynn nodded. We both felt guilty, I could tell.

"I miss Bruce too." I said.

"I thought you were mad at him."

"I am…but…I don't know." I turned my head to look at her. "You've been mad at Clark before, but you love him so much that after a while, you realize that it doesn't really matter whether he apologizes or not, you're going to love him, even if you wish he had."

I looked at her, desperately trying to get my message across. I couldn't just tell her that I loved him, it was too big a feeling for words. "Do you understand?"

She nodded, then smiled. "I do."

We both turned our eyes back forward, and I sighed again, the familiar cycle beginning one more in my head.

After all, there was only so much to think about.

Bruce came up the most.

The next day was hell. Pure hell.

Clark hadn't slept at all the night before, the fact that he had not been there to protect Amee and Lynn kept him up. He had waited until 9:00 for them to show up, though he knew they wouldn't, then he'd went out in search of them. As he expected, there was no sign of his sister or fiancée, but there was a good-sized hole in an alleyway now.

He quickly came to the only conclusion. The Luthors. Why else would Lynn _and _ Amee be missing? Lex had been trying for years to destroy him, but he would've only needed one of them to draw him out. Amee, being herself, must have gotten in the way of Lex's newest wife's take-over of Wayne Enterprises.

Under normal circumstances, Clark would've been breaking down the Luthors' door by now, but the fact that Lex knew not only his weakness for his loved ones, but also about the effect Kryptonite had on him, kept him from following through on that plan…

It was clear to Clark that he needed help, and even though the first person that to his mind wasn't at the top of his trust list (hell, he wasn't even on it!), he knew it was his only hope.

If Bruce Wayne had the smallest feelings for his sister, then he would help. And if Aimee trusted him, that should be good enough for Clark…for now anyway.


	31. Chapter 30

"I don't care if he's in a meeting or not! I need to see Bruce Wayne now, it's urgent!" Clark nearly yelled for at least the third time at Bruce's secretary.

'I'm sorry, but Mr. Wayne is-"

"In a meeting." Clark finished testily. "I know!"

"He's also signing the company over to Mrs. Luthor." She said matter-of-factly.

Without another word, Clark walked over to the door that led to the conference room and gave it a little pull, well, little for him anyway, it came open easily. Everyone in the room turned to look at the newcomer, all except Bruce.

Bruce stood at the far end of the table, pen in hand, and the contract laid before him. As he placed the pen to the paper, Clark seized his wrist, leaving a long black ink mark across the contract.

"Who the-" Bruce started to ask.

"I'm Amee's brother, Clark." Clark explained, glaring at him.

"It's…nice to finally meet you?" Bruce said, a bit confused.

"We need to talk."

"I'm a little busy right now, perhaps we can discuss this after I've signed the contract?"

"If you have the smallest of feelings for my sister, you'll talk to me _now._"

Bruce stared at Clark a moment as if just realizing what he had said, he nodded slowly, then turned to the other people seated around the table.

"Members of the board and Mrs. Luthor, if you'll excuse me a few moments." He then quickly led Clark out of the room and into the hall. "What's wrong with Amee? Is she okay?"

"I think the Luthors kidnapped Amee and Lynn." Clark replied.

"How long have they been missing?"

"Sine yesterday afternoon."

Bruce began walking toward the elevators and Clark fell in beside him, knowing he'd gotten through to him.

"Do you know where they are?" Bruce asked.

"Probably at the Luthor mansion."

"All right. I'll check there first."

"I'm coming with you." Clark said as though it were obvious.

"Listen, I'm sure Amee told you who I am-"

"I doubt she told you who I am." Clark broke in. "I'm Superman."

Bruce stared at him a moment, then said, "That will be helpful."

Once outside of Wayne Tower, Bruce and Clark didn't talk anymore, neither felt the need to. Each was lost in thought, in guilt for not being there. Both were determined to save who they cared about most…at all costs.

Catherine Luthor sat in the boardroom at Wayne Enterprises, knowing very well that even though she'd gotten that damn girl out of the way, her plan was in ruins already.

One thought was in her mind. If she couldn't have Wayne Enterprises, now she would make sure Bruce would be in pain, and so would Amee Kent.


	32. Chapter 31

"Can't this thing go any faster?" Clark asked Bruce as the Batmobile sped toward Luthor mansion.

"Look, not everything moves 'faster than a speeding bullet.'" Bruce retorted.

When they arrived, Bruce drove right through the iron gat that barred their way. As they climbed out of the Batmobile, her asked, "Do you know where they're being held here?"

"If they're here, Lex would have them in a lead room or at least one painted in lead-based paint."

"Why?"

"I can't see through lead for one thing, and Amee can't ghost through it either." Clark used his X-ray vision to see scan the house. "Got it. There's a lead room in the basement." Clark broke down the front door, and he and Bruce proceeded inside. They quietly made their way to the basement, thankfully, not passing any artwork that had kryptonite in it.

Once in the lower level, Clark again used his X-ray vision to find the room again. It was Bruce's turn now, he stepped forward and placed a low-grade bomb that looked like a bat on the lock of the door, then stood back as it blew up.

Both men rushed forward and into the room, but both of their hearts fell when they found it empty. Clark punched a fist-sized hole in the red painted cell wall.

"Where else could they be?!" Bruce all but demanded.

"At the new Luthor Corp. factory." Clark said as he made his way out of the room with Bruce right behind him.

Luthor Corp. Their last hope.


	33. Chapter 32

Amee's POV

Amee's POV

The silence in our cell was broken as a faint thump sounded from the other side of the door.

Lynn and I looked up just in time, and I shouted as what had to have been a small bomb blew the lock off of the door. Bruce and Clark stepped in, not in uniform, just looking as though they had thrown on the first thing they found.

Lynn ran to Clark, who hugged her briefly before taking her hand to lead her back out. Bruce came forward and took mind, offering up a fleeing look of apology. I took his hand and squeezed it gently, none of that mattered right now. My heart was thudding out of my chest, and I wondered if this was how Lynn felt every time she saw Clark.

We ran out, passing through what seemed like hundreds of dimly lit corridors and halls.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"Luthorcorp." Bruce answered. He looked ashamed to say it, because he knew how he'd been wrong about Catherine.

He looked back at me, his face once again begging forgiveness.

"We can talk about it later." I said.

We continued down the narrow halls, Clark leading the way, pulling Lynn along behind him.

Finally, we emerged out into a large warehouse-style factory, and green glow came from everywhere. Clark looked extremely queasy, although we weren't close enough for any of it to incapacitate him.

This, all of this, was Kryptonite.

Lynn pushed Clark back into the wall and motioned for me to follow her.

"Stay here." I told Bruce, who obeyed.

Lynn and I ran out onto the concrete, and I knew immediately what she was looking for, a computer.

Eventually, we found one, in the far right corner. The security wasn't active, as Lynn quickly discovered, sitting down and rapidly accessing the records and archives.

"Find out what all of this is." I said urgently, looking over my shoulder. Any minute, I was expecting Lex Luthor, or even his father, Lionel Luthor to burst through the doors and finish Clark off, with Catherine close behind to take care of Bruce.

"Working on it." Lynn said with forced patience.

I bent low, reading over her shoulder as hundreds of data files flashed up on screen. Finally, I spotted it, a manifest ticket copy from the first shipment of Kryptonite and other supplies from the Luthorcorp in Metropolis.

"Stop!" I shouted, but Lynn was already opening the file.

She read aloud rapidly, the shipments, the dates, and the destination.

"Here it is." She said. "Purpose: drug produced in capsule form providing judgment deficiency with mild side effects including blurred vision and pupil discoloration."

"That's it!" I said wildly. "That's what they did to Bruce!"

Lynn turned around and looked at me like I was crazy. "What?"

"That's why he wouldn't help that girl! That's why he's signing the company off to Catherine! That's why it seems like he doesn't care!" I paced in circles, chewing my nail. "It makes so much sense…perfect sense…" I smiled. I had been right, Bruce wasn't heartless. None of this had really been him.

I stopped, and my smile faded.

Was the same thing true of everything he'd said to me?

How much of that had been the real him?

Lynn didn't notice my sudden silence, but she grabbed my arm. "There's an antidote!"

I turned to the computer, trying to forget my trouble thoughts. "What is it?"

She turned and looked around the factory, her eyes scanning every last shelf. They brightened as they stopped on a shelf filled with red glowing capsules. "That." She said.

I didn't wait, just ran to the shelf and grabbed a small vial. Lynn caught up soon. "That's the liquid form, they're doing the same thing to the Green K drug."

I looked around, spotted a depletion gun and grabbed it. I inserted the vial and looked up at Lynn. "Go move Clark away from Bruce. We don't need him on a Red K high right now…"

She nodded and ran back to the other side of the factory.

I waited a few minutes, took a deep breath, and followed.

When I came around the last shelf, Bruce stood waiting. He already looked prepared and I assumed Lynn had explained to him.

I walked over, and he held out his arm, the inside of his elbow facing upward. I looked at him as I prepared to give him the antidote. He nodded, and I pulled the trigger. He blinked rapidly, but other than that, it didn't seem to phase him.

He looked down at me, finally stopping his blinking. "Hey." He said, smiling.

I tossed the gun down and threw my arms around his neck. He pulled me close, and I wanted to tell him how much I loved him so badly.

"Bruce, I-"

A cold laugh sounded from the factory floor.

"How sweet." A deep, familiar voice said. The voice of Lex Luthor.


	34. Chapter 33

Lynn's POV

Lynn's POV

"How sweet." I heard Lex Luthor say.

Clark took a few steps closer to the factory and again began to look sick; I easily pulled him back to a safe distance. The irony of this was that I felt stronger near the Kryptonite, while it could kill Clark.

"Oh no you don't!" I said, when he tried to pull away from my hold on his arm. "You're not going anywhere near that factory."

"Lynn, Amee's in trouble. I have to go."

I moved to where I was in front of Clark and looked up at him. "I'll go. I can put Amee and Bruce in a forcefield."

"No, I just got you back, I can't lose you again." Clark took my hand and held me in place.

I took a step back and his grip loosened enough for me to free my hand. I tried to put up a forcefield around Clark, and to my surprise and relief, it worked.

"I'm sorry." I said as I turned invisible (it had never felt so good to be unseen) and quickly and silently ran toward the sound of voiced.

Amee's POV

Catherine appeared over Lex's shoulder the moment he spoke, and she looked extremely pissed. Somehow, this pleased me. I leaned over to Bruce, but kept my eyes on Catherine.

"You didn't sign the company over, did you?"

"No, your brother got there just in time."

I couldn't help it, I smiled.

At that moment, two things happened, Lex turned abruptly, realizing Clark was somewhere else, and stalked off in search of him, and Catherine, a scowl of pure malice crossing her features, ran toward us.

I knew that Bruce could handle himself, or, at least, some part of me did, but I didn't think it through, I just lunged at her, leaving Bruce behind.

Lynn's POV

Turning a corner, I stopped dead when I nearly ran into Lex. Behind him, I saw Amee and whom I assumed was Catherine disappearing into a stairwell fighting.

Bruce began to run after them, but I quickly put a forcefield around him and immediately felt the effects. Casting two forcefields is never easy, and it takes a lot of energy. Bruce, being himself and wanting to get o Amee, started to beat on my forcefield and my head started to kill me.

"Now to find my own fight." Lex mumbled as I quickly side stepped out of his way. I hit my lower lip when I saw what Lex had in his hand, a depletion gun with a tube of the judgment drug already in it.

I followed him as he searched for Clark. 'Damn it! I should've known by now that Amee can take care of herself as well as I can. I should've stayed with Clark and turned him invisible.' I thought.

"So Lyndsey does have a meteor power." Lex mused as Clark came into sight, still trapped in my forcefield. He began to circle Clark, who glared at Lex. "Wonder how strong it is." Lex tapped the depletion gun on the forcefield, I didn't even feel it. "And what will happen when it's broken."

Slowly, I began to move closer to Lex, if I got that depletion gun, I could use it against him.

"Where is dear little Lyndsey?" Lex asked at length.

I jerked the depletion gun with all my might, but not enough to free it from Lex's grip. "Right here." I turned the gun invisible.

"I see the lead is out of your system." Lex said, trying to pull the gun away from me, "Vanish."

'Lead?! Clark is gonna say 'I told you so!' after all this is over!' I thought as I kicked Lex's feet out from under him. Catching him off guard, he let go of the gun. Taking my chance, I quickly injected the drug into his neck.

Amee's POV

Apparently, money couldn't buy happiness, but it could buy excellent judo lessons. Catherine was a magnificent fighter. Upon first glance, she did not appear the fighting type, but she was giving me a run for my money.

We had only been fighting for a minute, but I was exhausted. I glanced over my shoulder, Bruce was beating on an invisible wall around him, his mouth moving in soundless bellows I could not hear through the forcefield. Lynn must have put it up, not realizing I wasn't with him anymore.

A hard blow to my face knocked my gaze away from Bruce, locked in his prison. In the second I'd looked away, Catherine's thick-heeled boot had made contact with my jaw.

It took everything I had not to fall to the floor, but I managed to stay on my feet as she attacked again. It was then that I noticed she was backing me toward the stairs.

Now, my foot was on the first step.

'Great.' I thought. 'She knows I'm tired, not I have to fight _and _go up stairs…'

I ducked as Catherine aimed a punch at my already-bleeding lip.

"What is your problem?!" I screamed, trying to get her to stop punching and kicking long enough for me to catch my breath.

Meanwhile, she was still backing me up the stairs, and I glanced over my shoulder to see a large door waiting at the top. I put my eyes back on Catherine quickly, though.

"Bruce Wayne is my problem!" She spat venomously.

I looked at her curiously, shaking my head back and forth in confusion. I stumbled on a stair, but regained my footing without taking my eyes off of her.

"He own this town, he owns everything, and what's he worked for? Nothing! I've spent my whole life building my empire, I'm just as successful as him, if not, more! I want to own Gotham! I want to be in charge! I want _everything!"_

There were only a few steps to go, and I stopped, as did Catherine.

"You're insane!" I yelled. "And if you think I'll let you lay a hand on Bruce while I'm breathing, you're worse than insane."

Catherine let out a scream of fury, and brought her leg up, kicking me square in the stomach. I fell backward, knew the door was behind me, and did the first thing that came naturally, ghosted through it.

Lynn's POV

Lex blinked rapidly for a few seconds, but showed no other change. I kneeled down next to Lex as he lay on the ground.

"Now listen closely." I snapped at him, still invisible. "Clark Kent is a reporter from the middle-of-nowhere town of Smallville. He has nothing to do with, nor is he, Superman. His sister, Amee Kent, is not the Phantom, nor does she have a meteor power. Bruce Wayne is not, and has nothing to do with, Batman. He also doesn't plan to sell his company to any Luthor at any time. Finally, Lynn Coulton has no meteor powers and is not Vanish.

You no longer think it's a wise decision to market the meteor judgment inhibition drug. When you _do_ wake up, you won't care what happened, you just want to get home." With that said, I hit Lex in the head with the depletion gun, knocking him into unconsciousness.

I got to my feet and ran back to Clark, dropping the forcefield around him and jumping into his arms. He held me close as he backed further away from all of the Kryptonite.

"You okay?" I asked him.

"Me?! You're the one that-" He stopped and smiled down at me, realizing what I was about to say.

"Your heart sounds like it's trying to beat its way out of your chest."

"You covered all the bases with Lex, didn't you?" Clark said.

"If you're referring to the part about Bruce not being Batman, you know that you would've done the same thing for Amee."

"For Amee?"

"Yes, Clark, can't you see that she loves him?"

He didn't say anything, but nodded ever so slightly.

Amee's POV

I hit the ground hard on the other side of the door and was too busy gasping for air and holding my stomach to notice either of two things. One, I was on the roof of Luthorcorp, and two, I had just ghosted through a solid door in front of Catherine Luthor.

…not good.

The door slammed against the wall of the tiny building covering the top of the stairs and Catherine emerged.

She saw me on the ground and came forward, taking her time, smiling a smile that sent a shiver down my spine, and not a good shiver.

"Let me get this straight. I've got the Phantom, Vanish, Batman, _and _Superman within my grasp." She chuckled. "I'll be even more of a celebrity than I thought. I'll have no competition when you're all at the bottom of the river."

She lunged downward, her long fingers stretched toward my throat. I sucked in all the air my lungs would allow and held it as she neared.

Just as her fingers brushed my throat, I lifted my legs and used both my feet to heave her off of me. I pushed as hard as I could, a small cry escaping my mouth as she flipped over my head.

She thudded to the ground somewhere behind me, and I could hear her clothes rip as she rolled across the roof.

Finally, silence, and I rolled onto my stomach, moaning as I realized a few of my ribs were broken from the kick she'd given me.

She got to her feet, scowling down at me. She took a step forward, and I watched, too tired to do anything else. Some part of me realized that I might not be able to stop her this time.

She snarled, and took another step.

Then…a blinding white light illuminated her face…the batlight. She threw her hands up, screeching, and stumbled back, one step, two steps…and a third.

Her foot caught on the ledge and she toppled off of the roof.

A piercing scream filled the air for what seemed like forever, then stopped suddenly as Catherine Luthor met her doom on the cold pavement below.

The batlight illuminated the sky, shining down on its first victim of the darkness.


	35. Chapter 34

Amee's POV

Amee's POV

We were already halfway back to the mansion, and neither of us had said anything.

I kept my eyes forward, holding back a few tears, because this seemed too much like the end for some reason.

While all of this had been happening, it had been easy to forget such normal things as being in love with a man I wasn't sure loved me back, being so mad at him, but also knowing what had happened may not have been his fault. Now that it was over, these unpleasant facts flooded into my mind, causing all the pleasure of being beside Bruce and knowing he was all right to retreat into the darkest corners of my memory warehouse.

I felt the batmobile stop and saw that we were back in the cave.

I stole a glance over at Bruce, who looked away quickly. My face reddened and I looked down to my hands, folded in my lap. It felt like we were back to square one.

"I'm sorry." He said, but I still didn't look up as I answered.

"It's okay. None of that was your fault. It was that – Catherine's fault."

He sighed, and I peeked up, looking at his shoulder muscles moving with his breathing beneath the black fabric of the long-sleeved shirt he was wearing.

"Then what's wrong?" He asked, turning to me and catching my eyes. I couldn't look away now.

I breathed in shakily, my eyes filling up again. "Do you –" I couldn't say the rest. At least, not what I had planned to say.

"Do I what?" He asked gently, almost hopefully.

I tried again, taking a different route. I didn't realize until I said it that this was my real fear, my deepest fear.

"How much of it did you mean?"

His beautiful blue eyes that I had fallen in love with as much as with him crinkled up, and for a fleeing second, he looked like a little kid. "How much of what?"

I paused. "Everything you did. With me. If you really didn't know what you were doing, did you – I mean…"

I stopped again, breathing out slowly, then closed my eyes, feeling stupid for having said anything, for letting myself get into this mess, learn the price of giving myself to someone. "Never mind."

I leaned forward, putting my elbows on my knees and my head in my hands.

Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder, a gently finger brushing my skin, the skin that led to my slender neck. Then, the hand went away, but came back, taking my wrist, then the other hand, retrieving the opposite wrist. Bruce pulled my hands away from my face, enfolding them in his long, strong fingers.

"Look at me." He said softly.

I did, and could have sworn even the second hand on my watch stood still.

"I meant all of it, Amee Kent. Everything I did, everything I said."

I blinked, one tear escaping and rolling down my cheek.

"And everything I didn't."

He let go and took my face in his hands, pulling me to him in the most gently, careful, passionate kiss we'd ever shared.

I ran my hands over his face, through his hair, over his broad shoulders, and down his back, until finally, he pulled away, breathing rugged, much like my own.

"I love you, Bruce Wayne, Batman, whoever you are, it doesn't matter anymore, I love you." There, I'd said it, and my eyes fell closed as I waited for an answer.

There was a long pause, or it may have been short, who knows?

"I thought you weren't supposed to date patients, Dr. Kent."

I opened my eyes, raising an eyebrow at him.

"You're not my patient anymore."

He kissed me again, lightly, then smiled.

"In that case, I love you, too."


	36. Chapter 35

Lynn's POV

Lynn's POV

I ended up sleeping for two days, which was less than I thought it would be. IN that time, it seemed that Amee and Bruce had made up and Clark had worried – no surprises there. The suicide of Catherine Luthor was all over the TV and papers.

August had finally come, nearly three months since our ordeal with the Luthors. Crime fighting had continued as usual, with only one change – the Gotham Post was now reporting a little romance between the city's heroes. It seemed that someone had noticed that the Phantom was now fighting alongside Batman, while Vanish remained ever at Superman's side. Sounded like something Chloe would write.

One the fourteenth, Mrs. Kent came to Gotham for two reasons. One, to meet Bruce for the first time and two, for mine and Clark's wedding. Clark had gotten used to Amee and Bruce's relationship enough to have him as his best man and, of course, Amee was my maid of honor while Chloe was my only bridesmaid.

The ceremony was short and simple, the way I'd wanted it. My dress was strapless with a skirt that wasn't poofy and no train. I'd never liked those things. And let's just say that Clark and I vanished shortly after the reception.

Clark and I continued to fight crime after we were married. We watched as Amee and Bruce created a life of their own and with some pushing, Clark finally admitted that Bruce really did love his little sister.

No matter what lay ahead for us, all I knew was I'd always have one thing that I couldn't count on, and that was my family.

Amee's POV

I looked down at the diamond ring on my finger as I rolled over in my bedroom. I'd been working long enough to afford my own apartment. It was better that way, now that Clark and Lynn were married.

Soon though, Bruce and I would be married, and we'd all move into the mansion. He'd asked me to marry him a week before, and I still wasn't sure whether my heartbeat was normal again.

I rolled out of be, and walked to the window. I opened the curtains, the morning sunlight warming my face.

This wasn't the end, it was the beginning. The beginning of a day. The beginning of a story. The beginning of a life.

My life.

Our life.


End file.
